The Rose of Geass
by AlSmash
Summary: All it takes to change the course of history is the most simple of actions. For Kallen, it has resulted in her growing into the Knight of Two, but for Lelouch, it has resulted in him not only getting on step closer to his goal of destroying Britannia, but also have the assets that he did not otherwise have. Now the two changed so much will meet, and the course will change again.
1. Prologue

**This is the story that I mentioned in the latest chapter of Ice and Fire, as I promised here it is. It's a bit different compared to Infy and Cathy, but it's another one of those small changes creating larger waves. So enjoy this first chapter.**

**The Rose of Geass**

**Prologue**

Hadim Al-Malouf knew he was going to die. There was just no way around that horrible destiny, it was ordained when the Middle Eastern Federation's capital fell last week. All that was left of a military that had held back the infidels of Europe for centuries was nothing more than the unit arrayed around him, exhausted, low on supplies, and with hardly any morale left. Everyone knew what was coming.

Yet their oath could not be broken, nor ignored. They were the last to his will.

"Contacts, lots of contacts," came the cry of his gunner, causing him to turn bleary eyes to the heads up display at the large cloud of dust in the air, a dead giveaway of a large enemy formation on its way.

Good, at least they would be able to kill some infidels before they met Allah.

All around him were the last remaining Bamides and tanks of his country, piloted by hardened and capable men who had claimed many Britannians in combat.

"Ready up," he commanded, knowing full well they had the range over the invaders before they had to close the range, which allowed them to rack up kills, and the formation they were using would leave them with the butcher's bill.

However, the hope that they would accrue a body count to please Allah disappeared abruptly when the dust cloud came to a stop well outside of their range, but well within visual. It took a few moments for it to dissipate, but when it did, Hadim's blood chilled at the sight before him.

"It's her," one of the men whispered, terror easily discernible in his voice, "Shaitan's Bride."

"The Bitch of Britannia," another one said.

"Crimson Death."

"Blood Princess."

Their source of terror was a lone Knightmare that stood in front of dozens of Gloucesters and Sutherlands, the white, with red and gold trim, and a rose painted on its left shoulder. Adorned on the head was a single horn that jutted upwards to the sky.

Everyone in the Middle Eastern Federation knew that Knightmare and it's pilot. Ever since Britannia had invaded, they had been inundated by stories of a single knightmare that had claimed hundreds, maybe even thousands, of their comrades, so much so that it had developed into the type of story that was whispered in fear that _it_ would appear.

And now it stood before them in all of its glory, the Lancelot, piloted by a woman who had become legend herself in her dramatic rise up the ranks. Here to kill them all and add to her already bloodstained reputation.

Then the strange peace was shattered as the Lancelot charged towards them by itself. It was insane, there was no way that it could survive the fifteen Bamides and various assortment of tanks that were arrayed defensively, yet it did it nonetheless.

"Open fire," he commanded, keeping his voice as calm as possible, even though he could feel an edge of panic trying to assert itself.

As a whole, the Bamides fired, while the Lancelot continued its charge and was wreathed in explosions. A moment of hope that they had defeated it disappeared violently as a pair of small green projectiles came out from above, causing a Bamides to explode, causing panic as suddenly the Lancelot was amongst them, a glowing pistol in each hand as everyone stood there frozen for what seemed like an eternity.

Then it was moving, like a wolf amidst a herd of sheep, what had been an organized formation was suddenly turned into chaos as the Lancelot took advantage of the Bamides' critical flaw in that it was both unwieldy and designed as a long-range weapons platform.

"Spread formation, engage it at will," he shouted, even as another Bamides exploded, gone was one of the pistols, instead replaced by a longsword that glowed impossibly red, the Lancelot somersaulting and pirouetting like it was a gymnast, only it brought death at every turn, either through the pistol it held in its left hand, Slash Harkens that disemboweled and crushed, or the sword that met no resistance regardless of what it cut. Tank, armored vehicle, Bamides, it didn't matter what tried to do, they fell all the same, like chaff before the wind.

And then death came from Hamid, even as he snarled, firing the large cannon and missiles in a full-on alpha strike upon the Lancelot, but it swerved to the side as the shell flew by harmlessly, then its hip mounted harkens launched into the ground, suddenly allowing it to take to the air, the Lancelot once again contorting its body before the sword was aimed downwards straight towards him. He wasn't even able to scream before the blade cleaved through the cockpit, the Knightmare quickly pulling out the blade and launching into the air as it exploded, slash harkens flying back into their hardpoints as it then landed into the ground, Factspheres opening up on the shoulders, tracking any other threat, but then closing when it didn't.

"Threats eliminated," came the voice of the pilot after a moment, seemingly detached from the reality of what they had just done. Instead, it began moving back to the gathering of Knightmares that were awaiting her, at the front of the group a very unique Gloucester, it's cape fluttering in the wind. As the Lancelot, came to a stop before it, the cockpit bloc of the purple Knightmare opened up and a figure with dark pink as she stood up, her expression neutral even as her eyes kept upon the white and red Knightmare..

She was Princess-General Cornelia li Britannia, second princess of the Britannian Royal Family, and Chief General of the Imperial Army. The reason she was here was to finish the capture of the newly minted Area 18, which was now complete thanks to the efforts of the Knightmare before her as it pulled aside, its cockpit also opening up and slid open, allowing its pilot to step up and look over to the Princess.

Unlike the Princess, the pilot of the Lancelot had red hair that trailed down to shoulder blades, expressive cerulean eyes were firm and hard at the moment. She was dressed in the attire befitting her status as one of the most elite in the Empire, a crimson cape matching her hair color accentuating the uniform that all Knights of the Round wore.

"Rather flashy of you, Kallen," Cornelia said, a smirk finally appearing on her face, the redhead not responding immediately, instead reaching into front pocket to pull out a metal case and flipped it open. Cornelia's smirk fell into a grimace as the woman in question extracted a long, thin, tapered cigarillo out and placed it in her lips. She then flipped open a lighter with "MvB" engraved into it, and proceeded to light the cigarillo and deeply inhaled it, her eyes coming back to the Princess, the tobacco stick extricated from her lips.

"It's probably going to be a decent while before I will have the opportunity to stretch my legs like that, Nelly," she finally said, as if the cigarillo had served to allow her to collect her thoughts, "considering I'm Bismarck's little fire extinguisher, I don't exactly get free time to do something like this. Odds are he's going to ship me off to Eastern Europe again to keep the Europeans in check. If I knew killing Bradley would leave me taking up his job, I would have just left cut off a limb or something."

Cornelia could not help but sigh at the reminder. It was a bloody affair that still had left aftershocks within the Knights of the Round that were felt today. To many observers it was an act of impulsiveness by a newly minted Knight of the Round, but to Cornelia and others who knew Kallen Stadtfeld, it was a coldly calculated move that was intended to both send a message and remove a threat to her.

It had been a simple incident, during the reception celebrating her Knighting, the Knight of Ten, Luciano Bradley, had tried to crash it by confronting Kallen. It had been a simple intimidation tactic, Bradley had been quite vocal in disapproval of Kallen from the time she had been scouted til her knighting, insisting that a "weak half-breed woman" did not belong in the Knight. When no one stopped it, he chose to make a scene of it.

Only it did not work out as he had expected, instead of being intimidated by a man a decade her senior, she had instead cited an extremely antiquated, but still in practice, challenge to a duel, one that did not have any restraints from death taking place if the loser did not yield. Believing that he was handed an opportunity to fix a mistake by the Emperor, he agreed to the rules.

What had been expected for Kallen's impetuosity to be her death turned into a shock as not only did Kallen defeat Luciano, but she didn't even give him time to yield, lulling him into a sense that she would be easy to kill, she had instead turned it on a head when Luciano took to the offensive, ending with her beating him with her rapier. It had been a shock to everyone that the Vampire of Britannia could be killed by a teenager so handily, but it had happened.

As a result of that, Kallen had been forced to absorb both Luciano's own Valkyries but take his role as the Empire's attack dog, sent to any trouble spot to eliminate enemies of the Empire. The Emperor had honestly not been pleased by the event publicly, but privately, Cornelia had learned, he had been impressed by the young Stadtfeld.

Then again, she should have known exactly what Kallen would have done, considering she had sponsored the redhead from the very beginning. It wasn't that odd for members of the Imperial family to be patrons for soldiers in order to gain loyal soldiers and additional prestige based upon who they supported, what was unheard on the other hand was for a fourteen year old to be taken under wing, but that was what Cornelia had done when she had met the young girl who would become what she was today. Of course, it helped that Schneizel and Clovis had also assisted, interested in why she had taken an interest in Kallen.

What ended up was what stood here before her, the Knight of Two at the age of sixteen, and now at seventeen one of the most feared Knights of the Round in the world.

"You would be surprised at what life throws at you, Kallen," she finally said, "it appears that Clovis has run into some trouble in Area 11."

This earned a grimace from Kallen as she was busy experiencing the cigarillo, sighing, she just shook her head, "What did that ponce do now?"

"He's trying his best to hide it, but it seems that the locals are getting a little troublesome for him."

"Figures," was the muttered response. Everyone knew, well, with the exception of Clovis himself, that Kallen was not a big fan of her younger brother. Then again, when the interest of Clovis has been to try and dress up Kallen in all sorts of designs that he had created, some of them extremely...risque, there was no shock to it. Kallen tolerated him because of his patronage, but she tried her best not to be around him, "Who is it this time? The JLF? The Blood of the Samurai?"

"Interestingly, no. It's actually a new group calling themselves the Black Knights."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. They just came out of nowhere a few months ago and have been steadily making gains in the Area. Even the JLF seems to be giving ground to them willingly."

"That's rather odd," she admitted finally, turning to look out towards where the smoke was rising, "the JLF has always been rather fiercely independent of its holdings, suddenly giving up to a newcomer seems….strange."

"Indeed, that's why I've been ordered to Area 11 to assist Clovis. Along with you."

This caused the redhead to turn back to her, "Has Bismarck approved of this?"

"Actually, he was the one who suggested it. Something about you needing a break from running around."

Flicking the cigarillo, Cornelia was treated with a rarity, Kallen actually giving a small smile instead of her usual lack of expression or smirk.

"He always seems to have my well-being at heart."

"I also wanted to discuss with you about something else, but we can deal with that on the plane."

Kallen nodded, turning her gaze back towards the battle one more time, as if there was something else on her thoughts. But a shake of her head in dismissal seemed to end that, causing the redhead turning back to her.

"You ever get tired of this, Cornelia?"

"I would be lying if I didn't say no. But there are some things that have to be done in order to preserve the future."

"The future," Kallen snorted, "what future?"

"Kallen…"

"I have to go check in with Lloyd and Cecile, Princess," Kallen interrupted, her informality gone as she sat back down into the cockpit, "I'll meet you at the airport. Liliana, Marika, Kirney, Adriana, we're going."

Before Cornelia could say anything more, the cockpit slid closed and the Lancelot powered up again, landspinners already squealing as they gained traction and the Lancelot was taking off, four Gloucesters falling in behind it.

She knew she had fucked up, watching as the Lancelot disappeared, talking about a future with someone who had theirs torn away from them at a young age would of course leave a large amount of bitterness. She could even understand that, considering her own losses in the last decade. She had to wonder what Lelouch would have thought while he was in her shoes.

"Darlton," she finally said, weariness evident in her tone "let's go."

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

"So, this is confirmed?"

"Yes, our sources within the Viceroy's Palace have been able to confirm that Cornelia will be arriving here in two days with her army group."

The other man fell silent in contemplation. Then again, it was expected, it was an inconvenience to their plan to have the arrival of additional forces to Japan.

Japan, that was the name that they were fighting for, at least for him. It was his home, ripped away from him by Britannia in its never-ending quest to conquer all. It was the reason they had invaded Japan, for its large reserves of Sakuradite to power their war economy.

"I had hoped to avoid this at least for a longer time," the other spoke, "While we can adapt to the change in circumstances, this is an opportunity to fulfill my other objectives."

Other objectives, he thought, then he remembered. Even though their primary objective was to destroy Britannia, he had another objective, one more personal and dear to him, something that even nearly a decade later haunted him.

"We'll continue as planned, Suzaku. I doubt Cornelia is truly prepared for what is coming."

Suzaku Kururugi, the head of the Kururugi family nodded in acceptance. He was more handy with a weapon in his hand than to be the one to make the plans. No, that role belonged to someone far better than he could possibly dream.

"There is also the fact that the Knight of Two is coming as well."

"Oh," there was a chuckle, "well, that will certainly be something entertaining. After all," the figure slipped out of the shadows to reveal the grinning visage of Lelouch vi Britannia, his left eye ablaze with the sigil of Geass, "I would be a poor gentlemen if I ignored my dear fiancée."

* * *

**And there you have it, the beginning of a new story. Already you can see there are some significant changes that have taken place in the timeline. Just what happened with Kallen, what happened to cause Suzaku to side with Lelouch, how does Lelouch have Geass, why is Clovis still alive, and maybe, more importantly, how the hell is Kallen and Lelouch engaged?**

**Welp, you'll just have to wait until next time to find out.**


	2. Area 11

**Not a lot going on this chapter, this is more of a buildup for what's coming. I wanted to get this chapter out for those of you who are asking. **

**Chapter 1**

_**Area 11**_

There were quite a few things that Kallen hated, public events, dancing, most of her family, but those had no bearing on her right now in her distaste of the circumstances. No, right now, she was reminded just how much she hated flying. It wasn't the act of flying that she hated, no, it was the fact that she wasn't the one doing the piloting herself. She hated having her life in someone else's hands that she did not personally vet or even talk to in depth before flying to get a measure of the person.

But it was even deeper than that, if she was going to admit it. She hated having her life in anyone's hands, especially after the last seven years of her life. Seven years in which she was denied what she had wanted to do with her life and been forced into what she was now.

While she had admired Empress Marianne, she had wanted more than anything to be a lawyer in order to help people in need. It was something she felt she had to do, especially with what happened to those who were conquered by Britannia. It was made even more urgent when her mother's homeland had fallen and become yet another area.

Alas, here she was now…

"Kallen," came Cornelia's voice, ripping her out of her thoughts and causing her to focus back into the here and now, "are you even listening?"

"Sorry, I was distracted. What were you saying?"

Cornelia let out an exasperated sigh. Despite knowing Kallen for years now, it never ceased to frustrate her when the younger woman would let her attention wander away from what needed to be talked about.

"I was telling you how our gambit is collectively blowing up in our faces."

Kallen was never one for expressions Cornelia knew having known the girl since she was eleven, so when her lips twitched downward slightly, she knew that to be the equivalent of an angry scowl.

Of course, there was good reason for that. When Kallen started showing her skills at the tender age of fourteen and began making a name for herself, her family began suggesting in noble circles that they were open to the idea of marrying her off to improve the standing of the family. It wasn't necessarily her parents that were supportive of it, but Kallen was, because of her brother running off, the only person that could be used to restore the family's lost prestige due to her father. As a result, Kallen had been bombarded with various suitors who wanted her for what she could be instead of who she was. Tied with the fact that her family was attempting to pimp her out to the highest bidder, Kallen had come to her as she was her patron and sought a way to stop the attempts of her family.

As it so happened, Cornelia was the legal steward of the vi Britannia estate, a duty that she had taken after Lelouch and Nunnally had been sent to Japan, intent on making sure they had something to come back to, but they never did and Cornelia had desperately held onto it in the hope that they would be found alive, so much so to take a public stance in opposition to the Emperor's declaration. In any other circumstance she would have not held a candle to the declaration, but she had come using a very old Britannian custom practiced by the nobility in time before coming to the Americas, where as the steward of the vi Britannia estate, she could seek to continue the vi Britannia line by selecting someone to continue the family in absentia of the actual bloodline. It had amused the Emperor to where he had allowed it and effectively hamstringed the attempt to liquidate everything that the vi Britannias possessed, but also placed Cornelia in a difficult position as to selecting who would fulfill that role.

So when Kallen came to her with her problem, it had been a union of interests. There was no doubt in Cornelia's mind that Kallen could and would exemplify everything that Empress Marianne had represented and would therefore be an acceptable choice. At the same time, Kallen would be impervious to her family's overtures that were now reaching as far as gauging the interest of her siblings for Kallen's hand. So much so that Schneizel became involved in Kallen's development.

Using those same old laws, Kallen was made the fiancéeto her brother in his absence, and therefore out of the reach of any possible suitors to take advantage of it. At the same time, it served to protect the estate from Cornelia's family, and it provided Kallen the protection she needed.

However, it seemed that that the plan was in jeopardy.

"What went wrong," the redhead asked.

"It's the fact that you are supposed to continue the vi Britannia line," Cornelia replied, trying her best to keep the disgust from her tone, "I never believed that my father would take it so far, but he has made it clear that you have to restore the vi Britannia line, or he will personally intervene in the matter."

There was a long pause from Kallen, her eyes narrowed in stern contemplation at what she had just said. Finally, when she spoke, it was in a question.

"Intervene in what way?"

This drew a sigh from her, knowing that Kallen would not like what she was about to say. In fact, she was disgusted by the thought herself considering it reminded her of just exactly who her father was.

"If, by your eighteenth birthday, that you are unable to begin the reestablishment of the vi Britannia line through Lelouch, then you will become the next Imperial Consort to my father."

There was a very long pause from Kallen, as she absorbed the information that had been given to her by Cornelia. Cornelia could only watch as Kallen reached into her breast pocket and extracted her cigarillos. Normally, she would remind Kallen that smoking around her was not appreciated, but in this case, she could make an exception.

Except that Kallen did not smoke, instead, she just placed the cigarillo in her mouth as she turned her head to look out the window at the clouds outside.

"Kallen," she asked, finding it odd that there was no comment from the redhead. Usually, in private, she was quite open with her thoughts and opinions.

"You know," Kallen said softly, her eyes fixed on outwards to the sky, "it just makes sense I can't avoid my family's intentions no matter what I do. Only it seems that they keep getting an upgrade while I get damned with something worse every attempt. Consort...maybe the Black Knights will get lucky and save me from that hell."

"Kallen," now she was worried. She had never seen the younger woman so defeated.

"Cornelia, I consider you a good friend, so don't take this the wrong way, but I refuse to become another piece of ass for your horn dog of a father. I've made it readily apparent to my family, so I will make it once again readily apparent, I refuse that life."

It was then that she got to her feet, a disgusted noise escaping her throat, "I'm going to borrow your Knight, I need some steam to blow off."

She nodded, finding no reason to disagree with Kallen, whose life had always seemed to be at someone else's mercy. To be honest, she actually felt bad for Guilford, who had been a frequent sparring partner for Kallen before she became a Knight of the Round, if Kallen was like this then he was going to have his hands full.

"Just make sure he's presentable when we get to Area 11, I don't want the media getting the wrong idea and I would like for my Knight to actually be ready for what is coming."

"No promises, Nelly," the redhead said, striding with a purpose out of the cabin for the back of the plane where their Knightmares were kept.

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

"Out gambling again, Lelouch," Milly asked cattily to the ravenette whose were closed with his head propped on his arm.

"You should know that by now," Lelouch murmured, keeping his eyes closed. In actuality, his entire being ached at the moment, victim of another "fitness exam" that Suzaku had done, only it was more like hell that ended with Suzaku sparring with him after wearing him down with other physical activities. Honestly, his eyes opened up to slits to catch the smug look on his friend's face, he wondered is Suzaku didn't have a sadistic streak in him, even if it was for the best.

"Oh what will the girls think when they find out that their prince charming bats for the other team," Milly declared dramatically as she brought the back of her hand to her head, "I tried my best, but it seems that Lulu's heart has been claimed by Suzu here."

This left both boys sputtering at the announcement even as Shirley let out a squeal at the idea, Rivalz protested, and Nina's cheeks flushed at an image borne of an overactive imagination.

"Milly, I can tell you without any doubt, neither Lelouch and I are gay," Suzaku spoke, being the first of the two to recover.

"Ohhhh? But you two have always been so close and it seems when you two go gambling, you both come back exhausted and Lelouch either is limping or can't sit square in his seat."

There was a loud squeak as Nina's mind finally overloaded on the suggested imagery provided by Milly, the idea of her crush and the "Prince of Ashford" in a series of increasingly stimulating images, so much so that she simply slumped in her chair with a stupid look on her face.

"Milly," Lelouch growled, growing annoyed with the blond who seemed to be enjoying her moment.

"Oh, calm down Lulu, I'm just having fun," she replied, before placing her finger on her lips, "but maybe there is some merit to that, can you imagine the money we could generate if we had a series of pho-"

"No," Suzaku and Lelouch both shouted, looking at one another before back to Milly, "absolutely not."

"But Lulu, then you could get out of The Tempest," she suggested, knowing that the ravenette did not enjoy the fact that Milly's form of entertainment and the Council's money-making ability stemmed from him being used for some scheme or another.

"Absolutely not Milly. I refuse to be poster fodder for you, the same goes for Suzaku, so let's drop it and focus on the play, as much as I would rather not have to."

"Alright," she finally said, miffed by Lelouch. Seriously, why wouldn't he ever let her have any fun. Just getting him to do The Tempest was like pulling teeth, "so, Lydia won't be able to do the Ariel part."

This brought a sigh from the ravenette as he brought his hand to his face in exasperation, "Let me guess, she met an accident."

"Sprained her ankle."

Lelouch sighed, unable to restrain his frustration at Milly's antics. Not only did she want him to be Prospero in the Tempest, but some lucky girl in the Academy would be filling the role of Ariel. Unfortunately, it seemed that no one could last longer than a day because the fangirls within the Academy would be quick to act.

"Do we have someone else," he asked.

"Sophie."

This time Lelouch could not stifle his groan of frustration.

* * *

**TROG**

* * *

_Has it really been seven years, _Kallen thought as she stepped out from the interior of the plane and into the sun, her eyes taking in the land that had been her home for almost a decade of her life. She let out a breath after a few more minutes of observation of scenery that was nothing of what she remembered, the architecture of the maternal side of her family long gone, replaced with the jagged edges and unyielding shapes that were all Britannian and proceeded to down the stairs to where Cornelia stood waiting with an eyebrow arched in interest as to why she would be acting like this. But she didn't provide her an answer as she instead looked to Clovis la Britannia.

"Your Highness," she greeted, "Viceroy," she then added to acknowledge his other title and role in Area 11 as its head colonial administrator.

"Oh, you don't have to be like that Kallen, we're all family here," he responded, obviously not caring to be observant of the reason why both Cornelia and herself would be here, then again, that was par for the course for Clovis. She had to honestly wonder what the Emperor had been thinking when he appointed Clovis to the position, there was nothing that he offered and, in fact, all of his traits would only serve to worsen the situation in an already unstable atmosphere. It was small wonder that Area Eleven was not worse than it really was.

_Then again, _she thought as her eyes narrowed on the blonde, _rebellions take time to build to a strength to rival Britannia. Just throwing us out would not be enough, they would need to be able to hold against our eventual counterattack. Clovis is perfect for those tasks to be cleared. I have a feeling we're sitting on a powderkeg. I wonder if Cornelia realizes it._

"Brother," Cornelia chose to spoke, trying to head off any verbal exchanges between the redhead and her brother, "it would have been preferable if we had been able to arrive without all of this fanfare."

That was true, but Kallen had left that out, she had become used to Clovis' propensity for publicizing and celebrating everything. She could just imagine what the papers would be saying, once they got through with the presence of Cornelia, they would likely focus upon her in not-so-nice terms. Not to mention, it would tip off everyone that now Britannia was taking things seriously. You did not deploy a Knight of the Round for a courtesy call.

She tuned out Clovis as he kept talking with Cornelia, her eyes instead raking through the crowd scanning for threats and taking her mind off of the matters of royals. There were plenty of people there of course, well-wishers, paparazzi and the like, but she wasn't looking for them in her exercise of vigilance. No, she was looking for those that did not belong or seemed to show an intent different than those around them. Sure enough, she found one such person as her eyes came to rest upon a man with with auburn hair who seemed to be watching her for reasons beyond the others around her. Their eyes met for a moment and he was quick to disappear into the crowd, which caused her lips to twitch just a slight bit lower.

"Kirney," she said softly.

"Got it," the black haired woman on her right responded, moving away from her position and moving into the crowd, intending to either capture the man that they had eyed, or get an image of the man and run him against the databases for a match for later interrogation.

"Kallen," Cornelia asked, catching the exchange.

"Possible security threat, Your Highness. We have it."

Cornelia merely nodded before going back to Clovis, "As much as you probably want to give us the entire red carpet treatment Clovis, I'm not here for a courtesy call. We need to speak privately."

It must have occurred to Clovis now just what was going on, as there was a tightening in his eyes even as he paled slightly, "Of course, dear sister. Right this way, we can get to the Viceroy's Palace shortly."

"Kallen?"

"Liliana, stay here and await Kirney's report. I'll be at the Viceroy's Palace. Adriana, stay here and help Lloyd get our units unloaded and prepped. We'll be running a patrol in the Shinjuku Ghetto tonight."

What had been a slight pallor bleached to a ghostly white as Clovis spoke, "Why the Shinjuku Ghetto, Lady Stadtfeld, and certainly why at night?"

"Call it a hunch."

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

"So why are we in the ghetto," came the voice of Marika Soresi as their Knightmares stood upon one of the burnt out buildings that dominated the Shinjuku Ghetto, "I know we are here for a show of force, but there has to be some reason why we would go to a ghetto for that."

"It's not a show of force," Kirney replied, "as much as the Princess is hiding it, it's a takeover of the Viceroy's operations here in the Area. He has shown a distinct incapability to administer effectively."

"So, good for him, he's getting replaced. That doesn't explain why we are here," Adriana chimed in.

"We're here because Clovis is trying to hide something from the official reports," Kallen finally spoke, interrupting the banter between the quartet of girls.

"I don't see what it would be," this was Adriana, "official reports say that terrorists got their hands on a poison gas capsule, they deployed, and they got rebuffed, but not before destroying the canister."

"The only problem with that narrative is that Clovis deployed his own personal forces, including his royal guard, Adriana. The response is not comparable to the situation presented. If terrorists have a poison gas canister, then you deploy everything you have to retrieve or destroy it, not your personal forces."

"So, the Viceroy messed up, wouldn't be the first time."

"But he has Aspirus and Gottwald backing him up," Marika said, "it's not likely they would allow something like this, unless they were overruled by the Viceroy."

"And they would be sworn to silence unless asked by the Emperor," Liliana added in, "so, what would the Viceroy be hiding?"

"So you're saying that it wasn't poison gas," Adriana asked.

"It's likely," Kallen chose to end the banter. While it was an asset for those four to banter back and forth, there were times when it was not necessary. Besides, while they were on the right track, she was more focused upon the why of the principles. Why was the Shinjuku Ghetto chosen for the ambush, because it was a textbook what she could glean from the battle records. Was there something special about this region, or was it the best site available. That was why she was here, to ascertain just that and maybe draw out what Clovis faced, the tantalizing aspect of being able to kill a Knight of the Round would be too much for many terrorists. Maybe through that would they be able to get some information.

Her eyes narrowed as the factsphere sensors scanned the surroundings. It was one of the demands she had made of Lloyd was to enhance the factspheres so the Lancelot could fulfill a larger purpose than its original design as a theater superiority model, now it could act as a long range scout for forces with the best sensor suite in the Empire. It also helped to give her an excuse for long solo assignments where she could be by herself. Still, in this situation, it allowed her the opportunity to scan the majority of the Ghetto and analyze it to find any possible threats.

In her mind there was something definitely larger going on here, something that wasn't right that neither Cornelia or herself was aware of. Even the OSI was mum on what may be going on here, considering asking for any information from the OSI, even at her clearance, was like pulling teeth. So, she was left with the role of gathering intelligence before she could make a decision on where to from here.

It was a successful arrangement between Cornelia and herself ever since she had been allowed to pilot. In recognition of her prowess, Cornelia had allowed her to act independently on the battlefield, with almost every single instances paying off for the both of them either in intelligence or destroyed enemy units. It was part of the reason that Kallen had quickly ascended into the Knights of the Round because she had brought results in her actions.

"Head's up," Kallen finally spoke, "we have company."

It was true, as the factspheres were picking up a pair of Sutherlands several blocks away looking right at her, their own factspheres activated and scanning her.

She was about to order pursuit when the factsphere picked up another thing in the distance, this time a figure that stood on a building that was too far away for her to make out the features, but that did not take away from the fact that she could easily tell that whoever it was was watching her through binoculars.

The order died in her throat as she recognized that they were on their home turf, which meant that in all likelihood she was only seeing what their commander wanted them to see. All in all, it was more than likely they would be leading her unit into a trap just like Clovis.

Now it was becoming clear that was exactly what had happened. Whatever the terrorists had taken, it had been with the intention of luring Clovis and his assets into this ghetto to destroy them. This entire ghetto had been set up as a trap and she was not interested in sharing Clovis' fate.

"We're done here," she commanded, "RTB."

"Roger, Boss Lady."

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

"She's not going for the bait."

"No," Lelouch murmured, watching through binoculars as the Lancelot turned and jumped off the building, "No, she is not Suzaku. Then again, I would have been disappointed if she had fallen for such a cheap trick."

"I would have preferred it if she just had," the brunette growled, "would have made our lives a bit easier."

"Wishful thinking, more than likely it would bring Britannia down on us like an avalanche, we're not ready for that just yet."

"And the Goddess of Victory and the Knight of Two aren't an avalanche?"

Lelouch scowled and looked to the brunette, "They are a pittance against the full might that they would bring to bear if they knew I was here leading you, Suzaku. There's a reason why they sent a kill team to the shrine, and it wasn't to kill your father."

"I know that Lelouch," Suzaku retorted irritably, the anticipation of facing the Knight of Two ebbing into disappointment. He had actually looked forward to seeing if the Knight of Two would provide him with an opportunity to pit the Guren Nishiki against the Lancelot, "but there is only so long we can put off the rebellion before Katase and Kirihara get impatient."

"Soon Suzaku," the ravenette said, turning to face him the brunette and placing his hand on the teen's shoulder, "I promise you I will honor the trust you placed in me seven years ago. By the time we are done, not only will Japan be free and resurgent, but the rest of the world will be free of the cancer that is the Britannian Empire."

"I'll hold you to it Lelouch," Suzaku replied, a few moments of silence between the two, before he spoke again, "we better get back home. The last thing we need is for Milly to give us more of this morning."

"God no."


	3. First Meetings

**Chapter 2**

_**First Meetings**_

"So I take it last night's reconnaissance run was fruitful."

"It confirmed several things that we suspected, yes," Kallen replied as she sat down across from Cornelia.

"Explain."

"They were waiting for us in the Shinjuku Ghetto. Unknown strength, but strong enough to believe they could draw in, engage, and defeat a Knight of the Round and her unit"

That, of course, was not good news. An enemy confident in their abilities that they would attempt to engage a Knight of the Round was an enemy that was either cocky in their abilities or knew exactly what they were doing, neither a good prospect.

"What else?"

"Shinjuku wasn't a fluke. Whoever is in command over there drew in Clovis for that battle. There's a likelihood that this was merely the opening act of something bigger."

"I suspected as much," Cornelia finally said, knowing full well to trust Kallen's instincts, "what do you think of Clovis' chance of holding the Area?"

"Slim to nil. I've seen some of the OSI reports, they don't paint a pretty picture of his stewardship. If anything, his actions serve as a rallying cry for the indigs that we can be beaten."

This drew a sigh from the Goddess of Victory as Kallen's analysis matched her very own. Area 11 was in trouble, once again readying to claim the blood of more Britannians in war.

"The Emperor has refused to allow me to take over the administration of Area 11."

"Why," Kallen blurt out in a momentary and rare loss of control, "we are sitting on a powder keg here and Clovis is gleefully holding a match to it with no clue."

"According to him, Clovis has not shown any incapability to administer despite his defeat at Shinjuku."

"Then what are we to do," Kallen asked quietly, feeling the urge for some sweet nicotine rising despite Cornelia's adamant insistence that she refrain from that outlet in her presence.

"We are to remain here and maintain the peace under Clovis' direction," came the response that cause Kallen to shoot to her feet.

"Absolutely not! There is no way I am going to be under the direction of that ponce, the man has issues on what color he wants to wear for the day, there is no way I will trust him with the direction of my person and unit, Cornelia."

"I know, but that is the orders you are going to get, Kallen. I was able to get him to allow me to summon the Glaston Knights, but that's all of the support we are going to get for the time being."

"A pity they didn't kill him," she muttered under her breath just loud enough for Cornelia to catch it.

"I would appreciate it if you did not wish death upon my siblings, Kallen, regardless of if it would be a marked improvement on our situation."

"But maybe that is their intention," came the response that caused Cornelia to stop and think, "it's well known to just about anyone with a brain cell that Clovis is incompetent, and as long as they don't make a large enough splash then he will not be replaced. If that is true, then we aren't just dealing with an enemy commander with some skill, we're sitting on a giant mousetrap and we have a complete idiot leading us."

After a moment of silence, Cornelia could not help but agree with the summation made by Kallen. If the commander was as good as Kallen believed, then its likely that Clovis was kept in place simply because was easy. It was what she would have done if she was in that position. Which only made it more worrisome, because it hinted at the possibility that the commander of the enemy was likely either someone knowledgeable in internal Britannian politics…._or they were Britannian nobility._

That last thought was especially worrisome, the idea that someone of the noble class would raise a banner of rebellion against the Empire was likely to cause a chain reaction within the ranks of the Empire. It had been the Countess of Colchester that had started the Emblem of Blood when she had killed the Sixth Prince of Britannia, so for a royal such as herself, the idea of a noble repeating what had been done in the past like that made her leery.

"I will discuss it with the Emperor," she finally said, "if what you are suggesting is right, then we have a lot more to deal with than a simple rebellion."

"I hope I'm wrong, Nelly, God do I hope I am wrong."

"Me too."

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

"You don't seem pleased," a voice caused Emperor Charles zi Britannia, 98th Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire, to look up from the book he was reading, a frown marring his face.

"You weren't the one that had to suffer through an hour of Cornelia doing her damndest to make a point," rumbled the elder leader as he flipped to the next page of his book, not minding the fact that the source of the voice had wrapped her arms around him as she pressed her lithe figure into his back, a curtain of pink cascading over his shoulder.

"Ohhh, poor you," the woman moved in front of him, placing a chaste kiss on his lips, "you actually had to make an effort for once."

Closing the book, his gaze met red-ringed red eyes that looked up to him expectantly, "You know perfectly well I have better things to do than deal with her."

"And yet you did," came the response of the 'Anya Alstreim" as she draped over his large frame like a lazing cat, "you wouldn't do it if you didn't love me."

"You're right. Just like I did as you asked in regards to the Countess."

"You're not a fan of it, that's unusual," she said with a hint of huskiness in her tone, a smirk on her face as her hand slid lower than his belt and into more private places "I thought you would like to relive your youth, back when you had me, imagine that red be a bit darker and," there was a nervous shift from Charles as she found her target, hand wrapping around flesh, "let go."

"I thought the point of all of this was to force the Countess into seeking out our son."

"Well that too, but that doesn't mean I'm forgetting about your needs, love. Look at it this way, it's a win-win for you, either she catches up to Lelouch and she drags him back kicking and screaming, or she doesn't and you get yourself another plaything. I thought you would like that."

"We'll see, with Lelouch, things have not usually worked out the way we wanted it. What if he kills her?"

This drew a light, airy laugh from the pinkette even as she continued her ministrations, "Do you think Lulu would kill something that would interest him like this? I know he's going to take the bait because he has never been one to turn down a challenge that interested him."

"And if you're wrong?"

She leaned in even closer, her lips by his ear.

"I'm never wrong."

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

"You were right, they are leaving Clovis in charge."

"I told you Suzaku, stupidity is rewarded if your rank is high enough as long as it doesn't make too large of a splash," Lelouch replied as he looked up from his laptop, his feet hanging over the edge of the Ashford Academy as they enjoyed the break in between classes. On the computer screen were several files that Lelouch was going in between as he wrote a report for further reading. In any other circumstance, Suzaku would have been irritated by Lelouch's aloofness, but the files in question regarded the rebellion, which meant that it would not be a good idea to bother him.

"And what do you think of the Countess?"

"A hindrance, but nothing too troublesome to the plan," Lelouch replied, continuing his typing, "I plan to intercept her support staff soon and pick their minds a bit."

_By picking their minds you mean Geass, _Suzaku thought to himself distastefully but did not say anything. It was the one thing he disagree with Lelouch over for the Shinjuku battle, the setup for it being the capture of the secret project that Clovis had been working on. The fact that it had been an immortal woman with the ability to bestow a supernatural power upon those it forms a contract with struck him as completely wrong and he would have preferred if Lelouch had never made a deal with her. But that wasn't _his_ decision.

"And what about her?"

"We'll see. Japan is a lot different than the deserts of the Middle East, we'll just have to see how much of a problem she will be before we decide accordingly. According to my assets, her specialty is long-range reconnaissance and armed scouting missions, she is not a urban warfare specialist."

"Just because her records and history say something does not mean she can't adapt quickly, Lelouch. She _is _a Knight of the Round for a reason."

"Don't lecture me on the obvious, Suzaku," came the terse reply as he kept typing.

"I'm just making sure you don't do something stupid that blows this all up in our face."

A grunt of acknowledgment was all he received in response from the ravenette.

"Ever thought about converting her?"

Finally, Lelouch stopped, his fingers freezing upon the keyboard as he looked up, amethyst meeting jade for a terse few moments. Finally, Lelouch's eyes returned back to the computer as he began typing again.

"It had occurred to me, but I dismissed it as the risks outweighing the benefits. If there is one thing that I understand about the Countess, while the indicators are there for her to despise the system she dwells in, there's a marked difference between hatred and willingness to destroy. From what I can gather, the Countess is firmly entrenched in the former mindset. It is not worth the expenditure of resources."

"Not so sure about that, Lelouch," Suzaku said, "there's a rumor flitting around the noble circles that the Stadtfeld heiress has to either find you or she will be forced to marry the Emperor."

He stopped, an eyebrow raising in response to the statement as his interest was piqued.

"Do tell."

"Well, it's just a rumor, but according to Lady Wood, the Emperor is supposedly not pleased with the Countess's lack of dedication to restoring the vi Britannia line. So much so that he has become personally involved."

"I see," came the simple response that caused Suzaku to narrow his eyes in response, glaring at the boy who was his best friend.

"And you don't think that would be an opening you would take advantage of?"

"It's tempting, yes," he finally said, "I'll look more into it in the future, but for right now, we'll just continue as planned. If she interferes then she'll be dealt with just like the rest."

Unnerved by the lack of concern for his supposed "fiancee", he still kept his expression neutral even as he glanced over Lelouch's shoulder at what he was writing, before giving up as whatever Lelouch was writing was in gǔwén, the language of the court of the Chinese Federation, but Lelouch seemed to have an unnatural grasp (along with Mandarin, German, French, and Russian). Likely whatever he was writing was for his allies in the Chinese Federation that he had insisted the Japanese Liberation Front align with.

If it was any other person, Suzaku had no doubt in his mind that Kirihara would have nipped that strategy in the bud, but the benefits that they had reaped through the quiet alliance had exceeded everything beyond their wildest dreams. The JLF had quietly accumulated a first rate military that would surprise the Britannians once they began operations to take back Japan.

Pretty exceptional for a pair of seventeen year olds.

"I forgot to mention, Lelouch, but I have to attend the ball that is being thrown tonight by Clovis as the chairman of the NAC. Got a good feeling its so Clovis can show off the Princess and Countess."

"Lucky you, I get to spend the night dealing with Milly and her fixation on the Tempest," came the response from Lelouch as he closed the laptop after sending whatever it was that he had.

"You wouldn't happen to be involved in those accidents, would you?"

"Why would I waste the effort when my fangirls do it for me," Lelouch asked flippantly, placing his laptop into his bag, "hopefully Milly will give up before those accidents get too serious."

"And they aren't yet?"

"No one's dead yet, Suzaku," Lelouch joked as he got up to his feet and after placing his hand on the teen's shoulder, headed for the rooftop exit.

"That's not very reassuring, Lelouch," Suzaku called out.

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

Cornelia had to bite her lip to prevent herself from letting a long-suffered sigh at what she had been forced to partake in. Balls were something that she long-hated and avoided like the plague, but the first 'command' that she had gotten as the new "Military Advisor to the Viceroy of Area 11" was to attend this ostentatious fiasco of monumental proportions.

And it seemed that Clovis, in his sudden damnable sense of 'propriety' had made sure that there was nothing stronger than the fruity crime against humanity that was called champagne being served. How anyone could even get buzzed from this crap she would forever be mystified.

Yet at the same time, she couldn't help but have her eyes search over the ballroom for the one person she knew was in her own personal hell. Kallen was not a social animal in the least, especially as she grew older and more jaded towards the establishment to the point to getting her to attend any type of social gathering required an actual order, and even then she would not play to the social expectations of it, instead standing aloof and as far to the edge as possible while rebuffing any attempt to approach her.

A small glimmer of red was the only sighting of the Countess before she was once again inundated by those who wished to suck up to her for favor. It _was _the Britannian way after all, but it did nothing more than disgusted her by how dirty it made her feel to be sought after by such bottom-feeding trash. Only the presence of her knight prevented too many from getting _too _close to her.

"Excuse me," a new voice caused her to be snapped out of her thoughts of vultures and parasite to her surprise find a man of obvious Japanese descent in front of her. She was taken aback by the audacity of the man who was definitely not Britannia, "I apologize, Your HIghness, but I wished to introduce myself to you," he then held a hand out, "Suzaku Kururugi, of the Number's Administrative Council."

She glanced at the hand and then back at the the teenage, stuck between disdain at the person and shock at the audacity at the fact that he would try and introduce himself to her of all people, considering her history as the person who subjugated Numbers by the million.

"And what purpose would you introduce yourself to me," she growled.

"I just thought it would be proper that I did, Your Highness. As the chairman of the Council, we will likely be working in the near future and I felt that it would be appropriate if we meet before you hear any unsavory rumors about myself."

This resulted in the narrowing of eyes from the older woman in response.

"What unsavory rumors?"

"Well, there's the one about my... unfortunate liaisons with an underage Kaguya Sumeragi while she lived at my father's house. Truly, I look back on the days of my _ten-year-old self_ with undisguised shame."

It was then and there that a small part of Cornelia's mind decided to never, ever try and play poker against Kururugi. The man looked like he was discussing the flavour of the shitty champagne, not accusations of paedophilia.

"And, of course," he continued, "I've also heard it said that I enjoy drinking the blood of my fellow Japanese. Patently false - I don't _enjoy_ it at all!"

...did he seriously just say what I think he said?

"Oh, and you mustn't forget that I'm the criminal mastermind behind the Refrain epidemic. Because, of course, somebody must be behind the way no law enforcement agency has ever been able to make any significant progress in stopping the trade in the slightest. And, naturally, out of anyone who currently has an interest in Japan, I am by far the likeliest candidate!"

Cornelia's face blanked. Not, perhaps, as impressively as the complete and utter impassivity that Kururugi was managing, but you didn't grow up in the Royal Court without some ability to control your reactions. How the hell does he know about that?

"Last, but certainly not least, I also murdered my father." Kururugi said, and this time he actually offered her an expression; a strange, twisted smile that she didn't understand. "With, apparently, a pistol, a sword, a grenade, a Molotov cocktail, and, in one retelling, a rusty spoon. It's amazing how many of those allow you to kill someone in their sleep with a heart attack."

He let that hang in the air for a few moments, Cornelia's busy trying to school her features as well as the brunette before her before his smirk deepened, as if he realized he had won a game that had not even been recognized by her.

"Welp, t'was nice meeting you, Your Highness, I look forward to working with you in the future."

Without waiting for her dismissal, to her shock, he simply turned and walked away, and as she kept her eyes on him, she could only watch as he made a beeline straight for Kallen. A part of her was looking forward to the hornet's nest that was about to be stirred, but a small, very miniscule part of her that she would not dare recognize, felt pity for the young man who had the audacity to spit in the face of social customs to talk to her.

It was rather refreshing.

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

As Kallen caught her hand trembling at her side again for what seemed like the umpteeth time again, she could curse that her psychological discomfort was now manifesting in a physical way through the restless urge to smoke to where she could feel the twitch of her body as it protested her resistance to giving in. Just another reminder of the roller coaster from hell that was her life up until now.

Then again, her addiction was _her _fault considering she had sought ways in which to drive down her overall worth in the eyes of potential suitors. It had been the easiest pit to fall in, but now, in hindsight, it was such a mistake, because it had reached a point to where her body yearned another hit of nicotine, regardless of its negative effects upon her health.

Hands contorting into fists to hide the trembling, her eyes roamed over the ballroom from her elevated position to where she could locate the rest of her Knights. She felt a pang of jealousy at how easily they could mingle into the crowd, then again, they had the advantage of not being a half-blood like herself. Still, it served to remind her of the things that she was forced into simply because of her family. An intellectual part of her wondered if things would have been different if she hadn't been forced into the path that she was on, but it was quickly dismissed as nothing more than wishful thinking.

She was only lucky that she could be off on her own, having accrued such a history of being someone who was not approachable at a ball, to where there were plenty of victims from her sharp tongue that had been humiliated.

So it had been safely ensconced in her own self-imposed bubble of isolation that she had been surprised by being approached by someone her age. But not only that, she recognized him from her own research of the Area as the the chairman of the Number's Administrative Council as the sole scion of the Kururugi family.

"What do you want," she bristled, not enjoying the fact that Suzaku Kururugi of all people would dare try and start something with her. The only conclusion she could draw from it was the fact that she was a half-blood that he would even risk approaching her in some sort of twisted camaraderie that she didn't care for.

"Nothing much," the brunette admitted his piercing green eyes upon her, "I just wanted to meet the sister of a man I have come to respect."

Kallen, who had already dismissed him and was looking out into the ball froze before her eyes came back to Suzaku, her attention fully honed into the Japanese man now.

"What did you say," she asked, her tone frosty.

"I have had the opportunity to meet your brother a few times over the last year or so," Suzaku continued, as if unaware of the sudden tension that had cropped up, "he's done quite a lot of good work in trying to help with the plight of my fellow countrymen who are less fortunate, getting needed medical supplies and treating those who needed it. He's quite the courageous soul. I just wanted to see how he compared to his little sister. Suffice to say I'm somewhat disappointed."

"You know nothing about me." Kallen hissed between her clenched teeth, "You hardly have any basis to work from."

If she had expected him to back down in response to the implied intimidation in her words, she was sorely disappointed as he merely quirked an eyebrow in silent challenge and continued his assault.

"Perhaps not, but I can assure you, you are a disgrace to both the Stadtfeld and vi Britannia names."

She froze again, this time as her mind processed those specific words, and then was overtaken by rage as her hand suddenly shot out, grabbing him by the neck, whirled around, and slammed him into the wall that she had just been leaning against. If it had been painful for the scion of the Kururugi family, he didn't show any such reaction even as her fingers dug into skin. In fact, if she had been paying closer attention, she would have noted that he seemed mildly pleased in the fact that he had been able to get her to snap.

"You dare," her voice a deadly whisper, blue eyes slitted in barely restrained vehemence, "when you know nothing."

"I knew Lelouch," came the still all-too-confident response in the face of such violence, "if anything, he would be better with words to describe you. The best I can think is disgusting, but there are other gems like gauche, arrogant, brash, bull-headed….oh, I know, _childish_."

Her parrying dagger was halfway to being impaled through his neck and into his heart when she froze, her mind catching up to what her body had already carried through. If she had not been so locked into what she had been doing she would have noticed that Suzaku had tensed oh-so-slightly in preparation for what she had been about to do. Yet, they both stood there, Kallen realizing that the music had stopped and before she turned her head to look, she _knew_ that everything had stopped to witness the scene that she was making.

As her eyes caught the eyes that w ere all locked on her, she could make out the variety of different looks on the faces of those who could see her, mixed between interest in what she was doing to disgust, to a few veiled looks that she could only recognized as _silently urging_ her to do to the deed. Then she was back to herself as she looked back to Suzaku's expression which had not changed, that damnable challenge still in his eyes. It was then and there that she realized just how _dangerous _Suzaku Kururugi was if he would willingly go out and challenge her like this.

Realizing that she had lost the first fight, she let go of his neck, noting the red marks from where her fingers had dough into flesh hard enough to bruise, a mark that everyone by this time tomorrow _would know_ that she had lost her carefully crafted control.

"Stay away from me," she declared frostily once she had regained some semblance of control, her tone full of the hatred that she felt for this teenager readily apparent to anyone listening.

With that said, she sheathed the dagger and stormed away, her cloak billowing angrily behind her. She stormed on past Cornelia who tried to intercept her, intent on forgetting this evening as quickly as possible.

* * *

**TRoG**

* * *

The evening had gone about as well as Lelouch had expected, with Milly driving him up a wall over the problems that had developed with the fact that there was no one that would now fill the role of Ariel for _The Tempest_. He had to sit there as Milly ranted and raved about how hard it was to put together a stage production, regardless of the fact that it placed the secrecy of his presence at Ashford at risk, that had unfortunately been dismissed by "Her Milliness".

So, it had been to his surprise when Suzaku had come back as soon as he had finally settled in for the night with Nunnally asleep and he was busy going over some reports as the door to the the apartment opened and Suzaku stepped in. Looking up to his best friend, he quickly noted that there were bruises on his neck and….._were those fingerprints?_

"Suzaku?"

A simple hand placed upon his shoulder was the only response for a moment, "You know Lelouch, you know how to pick them. I can tell you that the Countess is a definite firecrotch."

And with that, Suzaku headed towards his room, leaving Lelouch with those words racing through his head as he dumbly processed them. Finally when it did, he only had one word to describe the sheer randomness of what Suzaku had said.

"What?"


End file.
